Super Tuesday marks set-back in Bernie Sanders’ chances for a nomination

Progressive candidate Bernie Sanders has lost the delegates lead he had so far held over the other candidates. After the results, Biden took the lead by over 70 delegate votes

March 04, 2020 by Peoples Dispatch
US primaries
Democratic party candidates Bernie Sanders (left) and Joe Biden.

The results of the US Democratic Party’s marathon primaries aka Super Tuesday have thrown the race wide open. The results have given a boost to the candidature of former vice-president and establishment favorite Joe Biden who has been facing a lot of criticism from progressive sections of the Democrats. Meanwhile, front-runner Bernie Sanders did not perform as well as expected. The inner-party elections were held in 14 State wings of the party. Biden has come out as the winner or the leading candidate in at least 10 of the 14 States that went for primaries on March 3, and is now ahead of Sanders in terms of the total number of delegates by about 70.

However, Sanders’ victory in California, the State which had the highest number of delegates on Tuesday, ensured that he was very much in the race. In many States, the margins between the candidates is very low and hence, it will be a few days before the exact delegate details are clear.

The performance in Super Tuesdays has historically offered presidential candidates momentum that often holds till the Democratic National Convention (DNC), where the presidential nominee for the party is elected. The convention is scheduled to be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in July.

The results have more or less confirmed that Sanders and Biden are the key candidates in the field. Billionaire Mike Bloomberg, who was able to bag the delegates only from American Samoa, dropped out of the race on Wednesday and pledged his support to Biden, after spending millions on his campaign. Meanwhile, another key candidate, Elizabeth Warren, has said that she will continue to contest in the primaries. Observers said that Warren’s candidature may have affected Sanders’ prospects in four States, including her home State of Massachusetts where Biden won a surprise victory. Many progressives have called on Warren to withdraw and support Sanders as her platform is far closer to his. It is worth recalling that the withdrawals of center-right candidates Amy Klobuchar and Pete Buttigieg may have provided a huge boost of Biden on Tuesday.